Folding chair



May 5, 1942. Ri c. ANGELL 2,282,109

' FOLDING CHAIR Fil ed Oct. 5, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG: 1.

INVENTOR ATTORNEY May 5, 1942. I c; ANGELL 2,282,109

FOLDING CHAIR Filed Oct. 5, 1 939 S'Sheetg-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY May 5, 1942.

R. C. ANGELL FOLDING CHAIR 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Oct. 5. 1939 INVENTOR ATTORNEY z wd gdw y 1942- R. c. ANGELL I FOLDING CHAIR 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 5. 1939 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented May 5, 1942 UNlTE sires FOLDING C Application (October 5, 1939, Serial No. 297,9iiilv 6 Claims. (ill. l55--25) My invention relates particularly to that type 'of chairs that may be folded to occupy'a minimum of space and to be conveniently transported from place to place, and is especially directed to chairs adapted to the requirements of itinerant dental practitioners and to the needs of the professional staff of the army and navy.

The principal objects of my invention are to provide a portable chair of such simplified construction that it may be readily folded into such a compact form as to be conveniently housed in a minimum sized container, or a plurality of such chairs may be staclr'ed in folded condition so as-to conserve space when stored or when loaded for transportation from one place to an- Other objects of my. invention are to provide a portable chair having relatively adjustable seat, back and headrest, with legs readily foldable into compact relation therewith for convenient transportation or storage, as may be desired, and that maybe as easily unfolded, and the assembled structure set up for use with equal facility. e

Further objects of my invention are to provide a portable chair in which the seat and back are capable of a wide range of adjustment, and

may be conveniently raised and lowered or tilted into the different desired positions most convenient to the operator and comfort to the patient.

My invention comprehends a portable chair having a substantially form-fitting seat, baclr. and headrest preferably formed of thin material, preferably metal, and being capable of relative adjustment, the seat and back being hingedly connected and together slidably mounted upon the backrest frame slide-bar which is tiltably supported upon a suitably pro= videdfoldable tripod mounting.

The form of my invention as hereinafter more definitely specifiedcomprises a portable dental chair in which theseat and back are relatively hinged to permit them to be collapsed into folded position and to aiford adjustment into differentpositions on the back-supporting slide-bar, which is tiltably mounted and adjustably re= tained in relatively different positions of inclination upon the tripod mounting. Said tripod mounting comprises a frame prop normally inclined and extending rearwardly andterminat= ing in a strut bar having relatively spaced feet, its forward end afiording a pivotal or hinged support for said backrest supporting slide-bar and providing relatively angular pintle supports for the forwardly and outwardly inclined supporting legs of the tripod mounting. Said legs are so mounted that when turned 'rearwardly into folded position, they will lie in closely adjacent position to the side bars of said frame prop and in substantially parallel relation thereto. I

My invention also includes all of the various novel features of construction and arrangement as hereinafter more definitely specified.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the portable folding dental chair constructed in accordance with my invention as viewed from a position slightly forward of the right, hand side thereof; Fig. 2 is a central vertical longitudinal sectional view of the chair shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a rear elevational view of said chair; Fig. t is a plan view of the backrest and its supporting slide bar; Fig. 5 is a rear elevational view of said chair shown in upright folded or collapsed position; Fig. 6 is a sid elevational view of the folded or collapsed chair as viewed from the left-hand side thereof; Fig. 7 is a side elevational view of the tripod frame prop per so as viewed from the right hand side of the chair; Fig; 8 is a frag menta'ry central vertical sectional view of the upper portion of the tripod frame prop looking outwardly toward the right hand bar thereof;

Fig. 9 is a horizontal sectional view of said tripod I frame prop taken on the lines 9-9 in Figs. 6 and 7;. and Fig. 10 is a horizontal sectional View of said tripod frame prop taken on the line ill-ddtshisil. H

In said figures the chair, which is best shown in its set-up or operative position in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, comprises the collapsible tripod mounting including the inclined frame prop 6 extending rearwardly and the forwardly extending legs 2 and which relatively spread laterally, as best shown in Figs. 1 and 3; the backrest supporting slide-bar 5 upon which the backrest 5 may be slidably adjusted up or down, and the seat of which is hingedly connected to the opposite sides of said backrest b so as to be turned up or folded into parallel relation with respect to said backrest.

be engaged therewith by the hand lever 25 on the headed screw 22 in any desired adjusted position in a well known manner.

As. shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, theheadrest mounting-yoke is rotatably supports the headrest pad 23 which is,generally speaking, of the form of the figure eight extended horizontally, having a medial waist region 225 and oppositely extended lateral portions 26 and 21 expanded into cupped substantially circular contour and provided with the lugs 29 and 3t.

- lhe tripod frame prop I comprises the relatively spaced side-bars 3i and 32 connected at their lower ends by the transverse bar db which extends oppositely beyond said side-bars and terminates in the feet 36 and 37, and said side-bars 3i and 8d are connected at their upper regions by the web 39 affording a strut which'merges upwardly into'the substantially cylindrical bosses to and ill respectively extending both inwardly and outwardly from the plane of said side-bars 8| and 32, and being provided with the projecting stop lugs 22 and 23 respectively.

As best shown in the folded chair, see Fig. 5,

the outer faces -34 and 45 are relatively inclined 'i angular relation to the common axis of said bosses id and ll, and are provided with the bores 7 66 and 371 respectively extending into said bosses on. axes respectively normal to said facs 44 and 35, and arranged to receive the pintles 69 and Eli extended through the fittings 52 and 53 of the legs 2 and 3, and having theheads 55 and 56 which retain said legs 2 and 3 and their fittings 32 and 53 in position to rotate about said axes, said pintles d9 andill being retained in said bores by the set-screws 58 and ill].

As shown in Fig. 3, the relative spread of the tripod prop l and the legs 2 and 3 when in operative position is limited by engagement of the radially projecting flanges '6 and 53 on the leg fittings 52 and 53 respectively engaging the stoplugs'dil and ts on the bosses db and dl.

It will be obvious from inspection of Figs. 3 and 5 that by reason of the relatively angular axes of the pintles 45- and 5D, the legs 2 and 3 when thrust forwardly will spread laterally to an extent limited only by the chair 6| as shown in Fig. 3; and when turned upwardly as shown in Fig. 5 into folded position, said legs 2 and 3 will assume a relatively parallel relation to the tripod frame prop l. 1

Referring now to Figs. 2 and 3, the backrest slide-bar d is narrowed downward and terminates in the bearing bosses 62 and 63 through the bores ofv which the pintles 65 and 6% respectively projecting from the inner faces of the bosses at and ll extend, so that said backrest slide-bar 5 may be adjusted about the axis of said pintles into which the inner projecting end of the set? screw 88 extends, being provided with the handle 85 by which it may be actuated to engage or release any one of said depressions to vary the inclination of the backrest supporting slide-bar 5 and the backrest i and seat I which are carried thereby.

Referring particularly to Figs. 2,3, 4 and 5,- it will be noted that the backrest supporting slidebar 5 affords guide rails I! and II which are slidably engaged in the grooves SI and 88 formed by theflanges 90 and 9| projecting from the opposed faces of the ribs 02 and 83 which project rearwardly from the backrest 8, as best shown in Fig. 4.

mferring again to Figs. 2 and 3, the backrest O and seat l are hingedly connected by the pintles 86 and 85 so that said seat I may be turned upwardly about said pintles into parallel relation to said backrest 6, as shown in Figs. 5 and 8, and thus folded for stacking or transporting.

As illustrated in Fig. 2, the seat I is provided with the rearwardly extended detent 98, which is arranged to be projected into any one of the several centrally alined detent apertures 81 in.

' tion indicated by the dot-and-dash lines in Fig. 2,

the detent will be sufficiently withdrawn from the lowermost aperture 91 to permit raising of the backrest 6 and seat 1 on the guide rails 86 and 87 to such positions that by permitting the seat l to again swing downwardly about the pintles ill and 85 the detent 96 may enter any one of the several apertures 81, whereby said backrest 6 and seat 1 may be supported at the relative distance from the floor as-may be desired by the operator.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the seat I and back- I rest 6 are limited in their downward movement of 6E5 and 66 into various relatively inclined positlons more nearly approaching the horizontal, its position being determined and limited by the backrest slide-bar supporting rod t1.

Said supporting rod 61 is pivotally engaged by the pintle 69 with the lugs 70 projecting rear-' wardly from the upper region of the backrest supporting slide-bar 5, which rod 81 extends into the bore H in the supporting rod guide I2, which is pivotally connected to the tripod frame prop I by the relatively alined pintles it and 15 extended through the bosses l6 and-ll on the tripod frame support I and the laterally extended bosses Wand 80 on the supporting rod guide 12.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the supporting rod "d'l is provided with the slot 8| from the floor of which a series of depressions 82 extend inwardly,

adjustment on the backrest supporting slide-bar 5 by the forwardly projecting lugs 98 against which the lower arched edge 89 of the backrest 6 may be engaged.

From an inspection of Figs. 5 and (tin which the chair proper is illustrated inits folded condition, it will be obvious-that said chair may be enclosed for shipment in a container, the internal minimum dimensions of which are determined only by the breadth, length and depth of the folded structure shown, there being afforded sufflcient interproximal spaces between the members of the folded structure to permit packing of the accessories, such as the headrest and itsseveral supporting parts illustrated in Figs; 1, 2 and 3, within the dimensions above referred to.

My invention is advantageous in that the chair, which is constructed to accommodate persons of any size and weight and may be extended to,

various heights. and inclined at different. angles to meet all possible requirements of the operator, may be readily folded or collapsed so as to be enclosed in a minimum space for stacking or shipping.

I do not desire to limit my inventionto the precise details of construction and arrangement as herein set forth, as it is obvious that various modifications may be made therein without departing from the essential features of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A folding chair comprising a seat and backrest, a supporting structure cooperatively supporting said seat and back and having a supporting prop, and including legs pivoted thereto on widely spaced relatively angular axes normally maintaining them in spreading relation,

and causing them when turned into folded position to assume a relatively parallel relation with said prop, and a backrest supporting slide-bar hingedly connected with said prop.

2. A folding chair comprising a backrest having grooves extending longitudinally thereof, a backrest supporting slide-bar having slide rails movably engaged in said grooves and upon which said backrest may be adjusted up and down, a seat connectedwith said backrest and having a detent engageable with meansv on said slidebar to maintain the backrest and seat in different adjusted relation to said slide-bar, and colsupport and arranged to maintain said slide-bar in different angles of inclination.

4. A. folding chair comprising a backrest formed of thin rigid material and having a headrest support formed unitary therewith, means supporting a headrest carried thereby and adjustable thereon, a slide-bar having a plurality of detent means upon which said backrest may slide up and down, a seat formed of thin rigid material hingedly connected with said backrest and having a detent formed unitary therewith and arranged to be engaged or disengaged with any of said detent means by eflecting a slight rocking movement of said seat-with respect to said backrest.

5. A folding chair comprising a supporting structure having a supporting prop and including legs pivoted thereto on widely spaced relatively angular axes disposed substantially in a common plane with said prop and normally maintaining them in spreading relation and causing them when turned into folded position to swing toward said prop and to assume a relatively parallel relation to said prop.

6. A. folding. chair comprising a supportin structure having a, prop and including legs pivoted directly to said prop on widely spaced relatively angular axes projecting outwardly and downwardly therefrom and normally maintaining said legs in widely spaced spreading relation and causing them when turned into folded position to assume a relatively parallel relation to said prop, and, disposed upon opposite sides thereof.

ROBERT C. ANGELL. 

